| asperity |
harshness or roughness, especially of tone or manner. |
| cachet |
prestige. |
| collateral |
property or other security put forward to guarantee repayment of a loan. |
| diurnal |
occurring or active during, or belonging to, the daytime rather than nighttime. |
| facsimile |
an exact copy or duplicate of something printed or of a picture. |
| idyllic |
charmingly simple and natural, as a scene or experience; suggestive of peaceful countryside. |
| impromptu |
without advance plan or preparation; spontaneously. |
| lorgnette |
eyeglasses, such as opera glasses, that have a short handle by which one holds them in position. |
| recurve |
to bend or curve back or backward, as the ends of certain shooting bows. |
| reprobate |
an evil or lawless person, often beyond hope of redemption. |
| sanctimony |
a pretense of righteousness or piety; feigned devotion or holiness. |
| stickler |
one who must observe or conform to something (usually followed by "for"). |
| syntax |
the word order or pattern of word order in a sentence. |
| transpose |
to exchange the position or order of (two things). |
| travesty |
something so grotesque or inferior as to seem a parody. |